Working With Interior Designers…

By Amanda Lane

I’m Not a Designer

My name is Amanda and I am the Marketing Strategist at Model55. I thought it might be worth sharing what it is like, as a marketing professional, to work at an organization that boasts award-winning interior designers. First, I will start by explaining that when I interviewed for my current role at Model55, I was intimidated by how glamorous the position seemed. Without knowing much about interior design other than that it seemed like an incredibly fun subject explore (thank you HGTV), I felt like I was entering some secret society where only people who knew how to match fabrics in an unexpected, mismatch-ey kind of way were allowed. Needless to say, I was wrong. Design Assistants Pick/Packing Art & Accessories in the Warehouse

What I’ve Learned

One of the very first things I learned from closely working with the designers at Model55 was/ is that interior design really is subjective. Of course there are certain practices that make a room look and feel pulled together, but the key to creating an exquisite space is to know and understand that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder. A successful designer knows that to achieve his or her desired outcome, it is vital that he or she truly understands the audience and their aesthetic points-of-view.

What I love about working at Model55 is that I’m surrounded by beautiful furniture, bright accessories and talented interior designers. I mean, seriously… To get to my desk every morning I walk through rows of the latest and greatest accessories, stacked on the shelves that line our warehouse. On that same route, I see the tables where our design assistants pull together art and accessories to make beautiful vignettes that tell cohesive, visual stories of “home”. When I invite myself to design meetings for the purpose of “marketing research”, I get to see and learn about all of the recent trends and goings-on in the design world from the perspective of professional interior designers. I love it.

Unlikely Parallels

As a journalism major in college I learned that the mark of a truly capable reporter lies within his or her ability to tell a story without exercising bias in the guise of selling facts. Now, I know what you’re probably thinking, … “What do her random recollections from college have to do with the topic of this post?”… I’m getting there:

Perhaps my favorite thing about working with Model55’s designers is how they approach designing every model like it’s a Pulitzer Prize winning story. Their aptitude and ability to design beautifully appointed models based on community demographics, makes every project we take on a new opportunity to tell an unbiased and captivating story. Just like talented reporters, the Model55 designers tell a range of stories that awaken the imaginations of our clients’ prospective residents. Our goal for every model apartment we design is to have our clients’ touring prospects step into their models and say, “Wow… I would totally live here!” And just like any worthwhile reporter knows, in order to tell the right story, it is key that you know your audience.

Working With Multifamily-Focused Interior Designers

I love this part of my job so much because it never grows old or tiring. Each project is a new opportunity to learn about different places and people. Just like personal taste, every community is different and every model is a chance to tell prospective residents, “this community is where you belong.”

It’s a Pretty Sweet Gig

To bring things full circle, I love being the Marketing Strategist at Model55. I love the intricate layers involved in the work that we do as a company and how every aspect of our organization from operations to design is driven by a creative curiosity to design beautiful spaces for a range of demographics. From the surface-level perks of seeing and being inundated with new and useful interior design trends, knowledge, etc., I also get to watch our very own “investigators” take blank canvases and turn them into worthwhile visual stories. And as a journalism major turned marketing professional, you can probably imagine that there is nothing I love more than good old fashioned story telling.